Ready to Play Today
by Leonhart17
Summary: SGMW's first softball practice. Pointless, plotless, fluff... 8x07 *one-shot*


First ever (posted) Grey's fic - so be gentle! I just couldn't help myself after the softball cuteness last week!

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><p>Seattle Grace - Mercy West's first softball practice had already started when Arizona Robbins pulled into the gravel lot at the practice field. After the Gunther had started to fix things inside the hospital, Owen had decided that playing softball together might start to fix the more personal relationships that ran rampant around Seattle Grace - Mercy West. Unfortunately, an emergency Appie when she was walking out the doors meant that she was late, though.<p>

Not that she minded because she sucked. Riding the bench was perfectly fine with her. And the view of Callie's ass in her clingy jeans was _spectacular _from her seat on the bleachers. She clapped and cheered when Callie snagged a throw from across the length of the field.

"Which one are you here for?" a voice asked from beside her, drawing her eyes. A man was seated on the row behind her, leaning forward with elbows on his knees. He had shaggy brown hair that fell across his eyes, and wasn't the only person on the stands, just the one sitting closest to where she'd sat down.

"Oh, I'm actually supposed to be practicing, but I left work late," she said. "But I suck, so until they notice that I'm here, I'm going to hide out over here." The falling sun was doing her a favor, the lights of the field not illuminating much of the stands.

He laughed. "Clever."

Arizona grinned, pleased with her plan. "I thought so too. Who are you here for?" She didn't recognize this guy, but she couldn't keep up with who was dating who on any given day.

"Oh, my team had practice right before yours. I'm just hanging around to cool down, enjoy the weather," he answered, stretching his legs out.

"Arizona! There you are!" Callie's call across the field and wave dashed her hopes of avoiding notice, and she mentally cursed her decision to cheer and draw attention to herself.

"Cheering might not be your best bet if you're trying to avoid getting spotted," the friendly man observed.

"Shoot," she grumbled, adjusting her cap, pushing herself up, and grabbing her purse and baseball glove.

Her fellow watcher chuckled. "I guess your friend caught you. It was nice to meet you, Arizona."

"Oh, yeah, sure, nice to meet you," she returned distractedly, jogging down the few short steps and letting herself inside the fence to stow her purse in the dugout. Owen gave her a smile as she turned back to the field, making notes on his clipboard while she took her hat off and weaved her hair into two braids with quick, practiced fingers. "Where do I need to go?" she asked, resigned.

Owen was checking his list and glanced up to consider her. "Have you played much softball?"

"Oh, um, no. I actually suck. You would think, with the stereotype and everything, lesbians and softball, that I'd be good, but I'm so, _so_ terrible. So put me where the terrible people go, please," she requested.

Arching an eyebrow, he smiled and nodded. "Well, since we're just practicing, we'll put you at catcher. Shepherd wants to practice his throws."

Her eyes went wide. "So the ball's going to be coming _at_ me?" She swallowed, but bobbed her head in a nod as she finished her braids. "Okay, I guess. But not too fast, right? Because we're just practicing…"

Callie appeared at the gate into the dugout, grinning in excitement. "Hey, babe, you made it. How was the Appie?"

"Oh, please, I rocked it," Arizona answered, grin tinged with nerves. She really was no good at sports. Unless it was a video game. She kicked ass at those. Of course, she had to be decent at video games, being the Head of Peds who enjoyed her job.

"I'm going to put her at catcher for today. She and Grey can switch off playing right during the game. But I will need you to bat, Robbins," Owen chimed in, noting things on his clipboard and pointing toward the catcher gear on the bench. "Torres, do you think you could help your wife get suited up?"

"Absolutely, Coach," Callie agreed, grinning and sending a wink toward her partner. He left them to go supervise their colleagues on the field and Callie tugged on a braid as she joined Arizona at the bench. "You look really cute in braids, by the way, but putting more clothes _on_ you is not something I'm normally okay with, for the record," she said, leaning over to speak into her wife's ear, kissing her on the corner of her jaw as she reached for the chest pads and stepped behind Arizona to put them into place.

"Okay, noted," Arizona said with a grin, turning shin guards over in her hands. "And back at you. Extra clothes, boo!" she declared, propping one leg at a time up on the bench to put the guards on while Callie buckled the straps of her chest guard over her shoulders and at her hips.

The Latina turned Arizona's baseball cap around backwards and adjusted it on her head, handing her the mask. "Softball looks pretty adorable on you, Robbins," Callie announced, eyes raking down her wife's form with a look of interest that she did nothing to hide. "And I don't normally go for adorable, but on you it works."

"Also noted." Arizona smiled cheekily, blinking at being addressed by her last name. It seemed to suit the team atmosphere of the softball field, though. "But you do know that I suck at this, right?" She eyed the row of softball bats lined up along the inside of the fenced dugout. "Can't I just sit in here and drink?" She moved her gaze to the cooler at the far side of the bench, knowing that it was surely to be filled with ice cold beer. "Please?"

"Come on," Callie denied. "This is supposed to be a good time. And teambuilding, or whatever. It'll be fun."

Arizona shot her a glare as she pulled her mask on, eyes narrowed as Callie's amused smile showed clearly just how cute she found the addition to Arizona's outfit. "_Fine_, but if I end up getting hit in the face and get a hideous scar, Mark is fixing it - for free!"

Crossing her arms, Callie's smirk didn't waver. "Of course," she dryly agreed. "You're not going to get hit in the face, though. That's what the mask is for." Her head nodded toward the field behind them. "Now, go get 'em, tiger."

Arizona rolled her eyes, muttering under her breath as she stalked toward the opening in the fence. A hand slapping her ass then lingering for a squeeze made her pause, however. "Calliope!" She shot a look over her shoulder.

The brunette just shrugged unapologetically. "I told you softball was working for you," she offered, still smirking.

"Remember that after you see how badly I suck," advised Arizona with an eye roll, jogging out when Owen whistled sharply to her. He helped her kneel and showed her where to hold her glove while Callie watched, leaning against the fence with her arms crossing her chest. The first pitch Derek launched knocked Arizona back onto her butt.

She scrambled up gamely, adjusting her mask as she tried to get back into the position Owen had set her in. The next pitch knocked her back onto one hand braced behind her, but she kept the bright yellow ball in her glove. Callie returned to tossing the ball to Mark, but she could hear the squeals her wife let out anytime the ball frightened her and it made her smile, even with her back to the plate.

Hunt called them all in as the sun went down entirely. They wouldn't have much longer before the field would shut down the lights, so he wanted them to all get some batting practice in before they called it a night. Batting practice had been a recreational activity for the residents and had been the focus of ladies night, but seeing what they could all do in a group was new. Everyone knew to step back when Arizona was forced to the plate, though.

She was holding the bat incorrectly and flinched away from the first two pitches from the machine, Mark, Owen, and Derek yelling encouragement. Callie was watching from Mark's side and she put an elbow in his gut, shaking her head warningly when he started to offer loud, obnoxious advice. "Leave her alone." A stern finger pointed to each of the men. "I'll take care of this." The three exchanged glances and Owen nodded, lifting both hands in supplication.

Arizona jumped when hands found her hips from behind, but the soft, strong grip was instantly familiar. "Wh-what are you doing out here? Is my turn over? Can I go sit down?" Arizona questioned quickly, eagerly, more than okay with getting to skip her turn.

"Shh," Callie coaxed, pressing herself against her wife's back, fingers finding both hipbones. She adored Arizona's hipbones. "I'm here to help," she whispered, breathing the words into her ear. "Just relax. She glanced down. "Spread your legs just a little more." Closing her eyes, the blonde obeyed, shifting her feet to about shoulder width apart. "Now just move your hips with mine, okay? Step into the ball when you swing, like this."

Arizona groaned as their bodies swayed lightly, Callie's hands coaching her through turning her hips into a swing. She couldn't have cared less that they were in front of their friends and coworkers. Callie was touching her, talking to her all breathy and sexy (even if it was presumably about softball) and she couldn't bring herself to focus on anything beyond that. "Calliope…"

Callie was no idiot, she knew the effect she had on her wife, the same effect that the slightest touch from Arizona had on her. And they were practicing for a softball game, but there was no reason that she couldn't make it work for her. "Breathe," she coaxed, Arizona's hips following hers even after she trailed her hands up her wife's sides and down her arms to adjust her partner's grip on the bat. "Choke up just a little bit." Arizona obeyed. "Okay, now bend your knees." She stepped back slowly. "And hold the bat at about shoulder height when you take your stance." She helpfully guided the business end of the bat into a solid position when Arizona set her feet and tried to follow Callie's instructions.

Taking a few prudent steps back from the batter's box, Callie nodded for Lexie to drop another softball into the pitching machine. Arizona only managed to clip the ball into a bouncing hit that would have garnered her a single, but she shrieked like she'd nailed a grand slam and jumped up and down without dropping the bat. Callie couldn't help shooting a proud, smug look over her shoulder for the men.

Arizona quickly resettled herself, shaking her hips as she shifted her feet and raised her bat. "One more," she requested eagerly from Lexie, the younger woman obliging her with a grin. The hit went foul just beyond the first base bag, but Arizona was grinning too widely for Callie to have the heart to say anything when her wife dashed over to her.

"Great job, girl!" Teddy praised as she took the bat from the shorter blonde to take her turn at the plate.

"Thank you! I had a good teacher!" She turned to watch her friend's at-bat and Callie curled both arms around her waist from behind. Without a thought, Arizona leaned her head sideways to give the Latina room to rest her chin on her shoulder. "I know I still made a fool of myself, but thank you."

"You didn't make a fool of yourself," Callie countered, tilting her face down to kiss the top of a shoulder that the blonde's loose three-button thermal left bare where shoulder met neck. "You hit two for two." Her eyes scanned the nearly empty bleachers. They'd been practicing for hours and it was now fully dark. And yet there was a single shaggy-haired audience member still in the stands. And if she was reading his eye line correctly… "And that guy is staring at you." She hugged her wife closer. Things had been so good lately and getting space from Mark and reconnecting physically had her feeling affectionate anywhere and everywhere. Let some guy look. Her wife _was_ hot. "Not that I can blame him."

Arizona blinked, surprised by the completely unexpected statement. "What?"

"I told you softball looks good on you," Callie said calmly, amused by her wife's obliviousness. "Do you want me to go get jealous and beat him with a bat?" she queried teasingly, nuzzling her nose into the blonde's neck.

Her wife twisted to look at her, confused. "I'm married! _We-we're _married! You think he can't see that we're together?" she asked in disbelief. "We're being all snuggly out in public!"

Callie laughed, nodding her head toward the other end of the sideline where Meredith and Cristina were standing in a startlingly similar position, though they were clearly swaying drunkenly, Meredith's arms wrapped around her person's shoulders from behind while they sipped out of a flask together. "Apparently our whole hospital looks like a giant stereotype from the outside," she noted with another fond nuzzle into Arizona's neck.

"We're much more couple-y than Grey and Yang!" Arizona protested, offended. "They're just friends!"

Dark hair tickled her neck as Callie nodded on her shoulder. "I'm just saying that that guy thinks you're hot. Let him think we're just friends if he's that stupid. I'm perfectly fine with him not thinking about what we're going to do when we get home."

Arizona moaned her appreciation of the idea, but pulled gently against the grip on her waist. "Calliope, Sofia's at home tonight," she reminded her reluctantly, not struggling too hard when Callie pulled her back in.

"She's been sleeping longer lately. And we can be quiet," Callie whispered. "She's always going to be around. We're not just going to stop having sex, are we?"

"Um, no," Arizona answered decisively. She rocked her head back against her wife's shoulder, leaning into her supporting body. "We'll just have to get a bigger place when she gets old enough to figure out what we're doing."

Callie laughed, couldn't help herself. She loved, absolutely _loved_, any mention Arizona made to their future. Not that she doubted her partner's commitment to her or to their family, because she didn't. Arizona was committed. Arizona was her wife and Sofia's mother. She loved hearing her talk about their future because she couldn't believe that this was her life. She was married to the love of her life, they had a beautiful daughter - they were the happy family she'd always wanted. And Arizona just casually mentioning them getting a bigger place sometime down the line made it all feel real. She loved it.

"There's the Ophthalmologist lady," Arizona noted, spotting Mark's new girlfriend's car pull up next to their SUV. "If he gets to leave, we could make a break for it too."

Chuckling, Callie disengaged with a final kiss to Arizona's neck. "Sure. It looks like we're wrapping up anyway. But they've been out every night this week. When are you going to learn her name?"

Arizona bumped her with a shoulder as they walked toward the dugout. "Please, Calliope, it's a girl _Mark_ is dating." She shot him a look as he jogged past them toward the new arrival. "If she's still around next week, maybe I'll make an effort to remember what's-her-name," she offered reasonably, leaning over to get her purse from under the bench. "Do you even know her name?"

Callie rolled her eyes, keeping her gaze on her wife's backside where the blonde was bent over. "Are you kidding me? It's only been four days! I think it's Julie? Julia? Josephine? I want to say it's a J name…" Arizona sent her a grin over her shoulder and caught sight of Lexie and Jackson entering the dugout and shook her head minutely, signaling her with her eyes. "How about we pick up some pizza on the way home?" Callie changed the subject neatly.

"I think we still have some leftover pizza from the other night," Arizona reminded her, smiling happily. Pizza had been in the fridge almost constantly since Callie had put a stop to Mark's Iron Chef adventures in their kitchen.

Callie sighed, making a show of being put out even as she wrapped an arm over Arizona's shoulders to walk her out of the dugout, the blonde curling her arm up to lace their fingers. "Fine, but we're still…"

"Oh, absolutely," Arizona agreed eagerly, tucking her own free hand into the back pocket of Callie's jeans. "But if we eat a pizza every time we have sex, we're both going to have heart attacks and leave Sof all alone with Mark."

She'd been teasing, and Callie played along by shaking her head with a grimace. "Good point. And I want you around for a long, long time, so I guess we should limit the pizza." Her grin returned and she kissed the side of Arizona's head, loving that her wife was still wearing her baseball cap. She really was too cute. "Not the sex, though. Not limiting the sex."

"I can deal with unlimited sex," Arizona declared with a nod, squeezing the butt under her hand as they cleared the field. The keys to their car were in her purse but to get to them, she'd have to either let go of Callie's hand or stop groping her ass, neither prospect appealing. Callie solved the dilemma by digging her own keys out of the front pocket of her jeans. "Shoot. I could have gotten those for you," complained Arizona.

Laughing, Callie clicked the button to let them into the car, the headlights coming on as she did so. "Yeah, you put your hand in the front of my pants and see how long it takes before we're having sex in the car."

Arizona groaned, a pout on her pretty face. "Mean. If we're not home by nine we have to pay Sara extra."

"Okay, so you don't want a quickie in the car, got it." Callie shrugged, winking as she pulled Arizona's head in for a kiss on the temple. "Just as well. Your little admirer over there is still admiring. Wouldn't want to have a big audience. As much of a treat as that would be for him, I would rather be alone with you without someone watching."

Humming, Arizona squeezed her wife's ass again. There was something to be said for jealousy on occasion, but for her money, Callie's confidence in their relationship was _so_ much hotter. "Well, do you think he's figured out that we're not just friends, because we could give him a bigger clue…"

A squealing laugh escaped when Callie spun her into the side of the car, pressing her against the door with her own body. Arizona was already leaning in to meet her lips, the kiss soft and slow. The blonde's tongue was hot as it traced over her bottom lip and she let her mouth open, giving Arizona room to play. She didn't particularly care that they had an audience for this. She'd never been especially shy, but whenever she was kissing Arizona it simply didn't matter who saw them. This sweet, gorgeous, absolutely incredible woman was hers and she wanted everyone to know it. As un-badass as it was, she wanted to announce it to everyone she met.

And if making out against the side of their car after teambuilding softball practice got the point across, she was happy to do that too. Arizona abruptly sucked her bottom lip in between her teeth, nipping and dragging it out. She released it with a pop and shifted to her top lip, cocking her head slightly to change up the angle. Like always when they kissed, hands wandered over cheeks and into hair, fingers tangling in the fabric of shirts and jackets. It was one of Callie's favorite things about kissing Arizona - the blonde was always finding a way to pull her in, drag her closer when they kissed.

A distant rumble of thunder broke them out of the haze but Callie was smiling against her wife's lips. "That's your cue." Sofia didn't like thunder. If Arizona wasn't there to rock her, she would scream all night. Lucky for Mark and what's-her-face that Sofia was with them for the night or Mark's date would have been totally ruined. Callie stepped back as the echo of thunder repeated again, releasing Arizona from the side of the car. She gallantly opened the door for her, grinning as the blonde giggled at her.

"Why, thank you, dear."

"You're welcome, my love," Callie answered her, bobbing her eyebrows at their cheesiness.

"Okay, we can stop with that," Arizona laughed again, hands in her lap as Callie closed the door.

Sliding into her seat behind the wheel, Callie unconsciously checked both of their seatbelts and her eyes found the base of Sofia's car seat in the rearview mirror. It was instinctual, checking on her family, wanting to keep them safe. And of course Arizona saw it, reaching across the center console to squeeze her knee without speaking.

It was raining before they got home and the thunder was worse, rattling the windows in their frames with a crashing boom. Sofia's wailing was audible through the door and Mark poked his head out of his apartment even as they reached their floor. "Robbins, thank God! She just started really screaming after that last big rumble," he said, stepping out into the hall to greet them. "You got this?"

"Yeah, sure," Arizona gave him a confident nod, "You go back to your date. Have fun!"

"Thanks!" He clapped her on the shoulder in a friendly gesture, drawing a tolerant smirk from Callie, one of her eyebrows rising. "I'm cooking for Julia!"

"Awesome. Have fun." Arizona had the key in the door and waved as they let themselves into their apartment. "Night Mark."

Their teenage neighbor who they used for babysitting on the nights that all three of Sofia's parents were busy and outside the hospital, rare as those nights were, was walking a crying Sofia through the living room, praying that the pacing would calm the infant down. Her expression was relieved when she turned toward Callie and Arizona. "Thank goodness you're back! I swear, she _just_ started screaming like this, but…"

"She's scared of the thunder," Arizona offered in explanation as she dropped her purse on the end of the couch and moved to take her daughter. "Hey there, princess. Mama's here. Mama's got you." It worked, Sofia blinking Callie's brown eyes at her and starting to breath more slowly. Arizona pressed a kiss to her forehead and her free hand trailed through the thin black curls at the back of her head. "That's my sweet girl," she coaxed softly, Sofia's head settling into her shoulder as her blonde mother rocked her.

Callie gave the freaked out looking teen a reassuring smile. "She's a big Mama's girl," she said, doing nothing to hide how pleased she was by that. Of course, Sofia was _her_ daughter. And like mother, like daughter. They were both suckers for the Robbins' charm. "Before the thunder, how was she?"

"Sleepy. I thought she was out but then it started rumbling. She might be a little hungry too. She only ate a little bit about an hour ago."

Callie's eyes followed Arizona and Sofia's back and forth across the room. The baby's eyes were already drifting closed, tired body gone heavy and limp in her mother's arms. "I think Arizona can take care of that. I hope she wasn't too much of a bother. You were hoping to get some studying done, weren't you?"

"Oh, yeah, it went perfect. She's a sweetheart." Sara waved off the concern. "And I got my reading done too, so…"

Nodding, Callie walked the girl to the door, fishing Arizona's wallet out of her purse. "You need me to walk you to your door?" she checked, handing Sara her cash.

The teen checked the time on her phone. "If you wouldn't mind." It was only nine and they were in a secure building, but parents were parents with no care for those details. "My dad…"

Callie grinned. "I get it. My dad's the same way. Still…" Arizona glanced up as Callie opened the door. "Just walking Sara home. I'll be right back."

"Okay. We'll be here." Arizona waved Sofia's chubby hand at her. "Say bye-bye to Mamí. We love Mamí, don't we, baby girl?" she questioned, speaking low and into the baby's ear. "Yes, we do!"

Under Arizona's practically magical charm, which Callie stated was all maternal instinct and Arizona claimed was years of pediatric experience, Sofia was completely soothed by the time Callie got back. They were in the nursery's rocking chair, the door to the living room left open, and Callie lingered against the frame to bask in her family. She couldn't believe that Arizona could doubt her own maternal instincts when she watched them together. It seemed insane that Arizona didn't see how natural she was with all of this. And it wasn't because she worked with children. The love and tender care she gave Sofia all came from the fact that she was her daughter.

"Calliope, come here." Arizona's soft request drew her out of her musings. "Sofia wants you."

"Sofia wants my boobs," Callie corrected her with a roll of the eyes that was entirely for show.

Arizona just grinned. "Who could blame her?" She leaned over for a kiss on the cheek as she stood up and let Callie take the rocking chair. "She's the only other girl I'd let get her mouth on them, though."

Blonde eyebrows bobbed teasingly and Callie blinked up at her. "Arizona Robbins!" The slow smirk that was growing on her lips belied her chiding tone.

Skipping backward, Arizona's hips swayed as she left the bedroom. "If you get her to bed, I'll get that pizza warmed up," she offered over her shoulder.

"Someone's job is easier than someone else's!" Callie countered, her voice low enough that she didn't startle Sofia from her nursing, but still loud enough that Arizona could hear her in the kitchen.

"Someone's not got any milk to bribe her with!"

"There's a bottle in the fridge. If you want to feed her so bad, you can get up and give her breakfast in the morning."

Arizona reappeared in the doorway, taking Callie's position of leaning in the frame and watching. "Okay. If I haven't been too worn out to move."

Humming in consideration, Callie made a thoughtfully confused expression. "So, does that mean you _want_ me to wear you out, or would you rather I _not_ wear you out?"

"Um, extra sex, please," it took Arizona a split second to decide and Callie smirked at her. "I can deal with being a little wobbly."

They were married, had a baby, but they could still flirt like horny teenagers. It was unbelievable but Callie absolutely loved it. The newlywed bubble was _nice_. But even better than the newlywed bubble was the married, happy family bubble.

Callie's pager went off and she slumped back into the rocking chair with a groan of protest. "Could you check that for me, babe?"

Arizona was already retrieving it and she laughed as she saw the display. "Good news, you don't have to go in to the hospital. Bad news, I pretty sure Owen just paged you to the softball field in the morning." Her own pager went off in her purse. "Paged _us_ to the softball field," she corrected herself.

Callie laughed, still rocking Sofia against her chest. "Can he page us to places that aren't the hospital?"

"I bet he's not paging _Bailey_ to the softball field," Arizona agreed, leaving again to check on the pizza. Callie joined her after a few minutes, Sofia already dozing against her shoulder. "Is she asleep already? Wow!"

Nodding, Callie winked across the kitchen counter at her wife. "You've got the magic touch, baby. Give me a minute to walk her around and I bet she'll be out for the night."

"Sofia wants her mommies to have a quiet night, doesn't she?" Arizona asked, speaking more to the baby than to Callie. "Because she loves her mommies! Yes, she does!"

Callie chuckled, swaying with Sofia, her free hand rubbing her daughter's back gently. Arizona really was a baby whisperer. If Arizona was on call during a thunderstorm she or Mark might as well just take Sofia across the street to the hospital and find Arizona. Trying to get their baby to calm down without Arizona was an exercise in futility. And if the blonde was in surgery, they were completely screwed, doomed to a miserable baby for however long it took Arizona to get done.

It took her a moment to notice exactly what the blonde was doing while she was getting Sofia to sleep but when she did, it drew her to a stop. She didn't actually have a bat, but it looked for all the world as though her wife was practicing her batting stance. "Shut up," Arizona ordered before she could comment. She was watching her own feet as she adjusted her position. "I can't catch, I can't throw, I'm scared of the ball - I completely suck. But I want to do _something_ to help and Owen said I have to bat."

"I didn't say anything," Callie denied, resuming walking with Sofia. The baby sighed against her neck. "It's cute, actually. You need to bend your knees more, though. And remember to turn your hips into the swing."

Arizona did as she coached, moving through the action slowly. Blue eyes were mischievous as she glanced up at her partner. "Maybe you should show me again. Spread my legs, bend my knees, move my hips…"

Chuckling, Callie arched an eyebrow at her, loving how quickly they could flip the switch between family and flirty. And this is what the rest of her life was going to look like. She almost couldn't stand it.


End file.
